Teammate Jonny Flynn doesn't travel with any stuffed animals, but if he did, an Energizer Bunny would be apropos because SU's freshman point guard is indefatigable. He has a battery that won't quit. He keeps going. And going. And going.

And, with him, so go the Orange.

Injuries and defections have forced Flynn to play every minute the past seven basketball games. Amazingly, despite the beat-down, physical nature of Big East Conference frays, the 6-foot, 180-pounder has shown no signs of slowing down.

During a stretch that has reached 285 consecutive minutes, Flynn has averaged 16.7 points and 4.6 assists, which are close to his seasonal averages of 15.5 and 5.1, respectively.

His endurance has been crucial because the Orange men don't have any other options.

"Has it really been seven straight games without a breather?" Flynn asked following Saturday's upset of 8th-ranked Georgetown in which the Niagara Falls phenom had 17 points, 9 assists and just two turnovers while quarterbacking the Orange to 77 points, nearly 20 more than the rugged Hoyas normally allow.

"My legs feel great. I'm going to ice them (Sunday)."

Good strategy, because tonight at 7 - barely 52 hours after logging another 40 minutes against the Hoyas - Flynn will need his wheels to be fresh for a road game against a Louisville team that loves to press opponents into submission.

"They rotate four guards in, so there's always going to be fresh bodies out there," Flynn said. "Fatigue may play a little part in this game. I think my 40-minutes streak will end in Louisville. I might come out of the game a little bit down there."

Or maybe he'll stay on the hardwood for another 40, saving his legs by allowing his backcourt mate, Paul Harris, or reserve guard Scoop Jardine to bring the ball up court occasionally.

"The key for me is to just rest on offense a little bit," Flynn said. "There are ways you can steal a breather when your team has the ball. You can't do that on defense. You can never rest when the other team has the ball."

It's easy to see why SU coach Jim Boeheim is reluctant to take Flynn off the court. The 19-year-old is a superb ball-handler, passer, driver, scorer and floor general.

And he comes through in the clutch.

In Saturday's victory, Flynn converted all four of his free-throw attempts, and finished the day 8-for-8 from the line.

When the Hoyas made a run that whittled SU's lead from 21 points to five, Flynn kept his composure, driving to the basket, then kicking the ball out to fellow frosh, Greene, for an open 3-pointer that helped the Orange redirect the game's momentum.

With their NCAA Tournament hopes teetering and two more Top 25 opponents looming, there won't be any rest for the weary.

At 17-9 overall and 7-6 in the league, SU will need to steal a road win either tonight or on Sunday against No. 20 Notre Dame, then sweep Pittsburgh and Marquette at home, and beat Seton Hall away. And even that might not be enough. The Orange might still have to win a few games in the Big East tournament in order to receive a bid on Selection Sunday.

"We dug ourselves a huge hole by losing some games we should have won," Flynn said. "Now, we have to try to climb out of that hole, but we can only do it a step at a time. Right now all we can control is how we play against Louisville."

A lot will fall on his shoulders - and his legs - against a Rick Pitino-coached club that's ranked 23rd in the latest polls and is playing as well as any team in the country lately.

Flynn, who's averaging a league-high 39 minutes per game, will need to continue to be indefatigable. He'll need to keep going and going and going because as he goes, so goes the Orange.